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•Service failures of partners in a coalition loyalty program have a negative effect on the responsible partner.•Service failures of partners in a coalition loyalty program also have direct and indirect effects on the program itself.•Perceived special treatment benefits of the coalition loyalty program can buffer these negative effects of service failures.•Service failures spill over to the coalition loyalty program if the perceived special treatment benefits are low. Coalition loyalty programs are on the rise, yet few studies investigate the impact of service failures in such programs. Using data from a retail context, the authors show that a program partner deemed responsible for a service failure suffers negative customer responses. However, customers’ perceptions of the benefits of the coalition loyalty program buffer these consequences. Perhaps most importantly, when customers perceive the program's special treatment benefits as low, direct and indirect spillover effects occur, such that a service failure by one program partner has a negative effect on customer loyalty toward the program itself.

Loyalty programs have been widely adopted by firms in service industries, which have led to the popularity of coalition loyalty programs. However, loyalty programs may prevent consumers from buying from an attractive firm as a result in increases in psychological reactance toward such programs. This study mainly focuses on how consumers evaluate the information of a coalition loyalty program based on perceived advantage, perceived complexity, and perceived risk, which expect to lead consumer psychological reactance. If consumer psychological reactance can be mitigated, consumers are predicted to be more loyal to such programs. Moreover, price-consciousness is expected to play a moderating role in the model. 395 valid questionnaires were collected and analyzed using SEM techniques. The results showed significance in all direct effects in the model, but only two moderating effects were supported by the competing model, e.g., the effects of perceived advantage on psychological reactance, and psychological reactance on coalition program loyalty. The study suggested that service firm managers should put more attention to the information about consumer buying habits, the advantages of program activities, as well as product price in order to attract consumers and enhance both the program and firm competitiveness, ultimately reducing consumer psychological reactance and retaining their loyalty to the program.

Purpose To counter the proliferation of out-of-town shopping centres, a spontaneous or planned coalition loyalty programme (CLP), one involving most retailers in an urban network, may positively affect a town centre’s capacity to entice customers and may enhance its competitiveness. The purpose of this research is to assess the effectiveness of CLP implementation in town-centre management (TCM) as a tool for enhancing urban commercial-system attractiveness. Design/methodology/approach The theoretical framework used in this study is supported by the evaluation methodologies of an empirical case study: the Savigliano Card project. CLP performance analysis uses a dynamic network-competitiveness index (NCI), an approach based on Laspeyres-type decomposition. The effects on each retailer’s profitability are then tested by matching network and regression analyses. Findings The results suggest that CLPs implementation in a TCM scheme can produce benefits and positive externalities for customers, retailers and urban areas. CLPs can influence a town centre’s revitalisation process, improve the attractiveness of the urban commercial network and increase the profitability of private retailers by enhancing cross-selling dynamics. Practical implications The paper provides a CLP performance-evaluation methodology and presents the benefits concerning CLP implementation in TCM strategies. Originality/value This type of CLP is weakly exploited in marketing theory and practice; therefore, the paper provides theoretical and empirical explanations for the measurement of CLP effectiveness in town-centre management. In addition, it has significant implications for both practitioners and academics.

The implicit promise of a partnership in a loyalty program (LP) is that the partners will gain new customers and the LP will reinforce the loyalty to focal partners. Although customers may be encouraged to cross-purchase from partners (which may create positive synergies), they can also switch among partners without forfeiting rewards (which may lead to the cannibalization of sales among partners). To explore these cross-partner effects, we analyze the evolution of customer purchases in a partnership LP across 33 partners from 16 industry sectors. We find that cannibalizations arise more frequently than synergies among partners, contributing to a “rich-get-richer” effect for high-penetration partners; e.g., 10% increase in transactions at department stores reduce transactions at apparel partners (by .04% for new transactions and by 1.18% for recurring customers); but in turn, they attract positive synergies from apparel (.11% increase in transactions by new customers and .37% for recurring transactions).

Purpose – As loyalty marketing programs have reached a state of maturity, the aim of this paper is to outline the key loyalty‐marketing trends for the twenty‐first century that can serve as guideposts as marketers create, expand and revamp their loyalty and customer relationship management (CRM) strategies.Design/methodology/approach – The paper uses data and statistics from numerous loyalty‐marketing programs to support its conclusions.Findings – Five key loyalty‐marketing trends are identified and explored in detail: ubiquity; technology enables but imagination wins; coalition lite; customer analytics; and the Wow! factorPractical implications – The challenge for marketers is to reinvigorate the market with new strategies, tactics, and technologies backed by imagination, innovation and sound program design. The five key loyalty‐marketing trends for the twenty‐first century identified in this paper can serve as guideposts as marketers create, expand and revamp their loyalty and CRM strategies in the new century.Originality/value – Provides a view point based on the authors' opinion or interpretation of the key loyalty‐marketing trends for the twenty‐first century.

The growing trend of networking in recent years has led to an increase in number of loyalty program partnerships, most notably multi-vendor loyalty programs (MVLP). In an MVLP (as in other types of LPs), cardholders frequently receive promotional mailings intended to increase sales at the participating vendors. This study examines individual vendor and joint (multiple vendors) promotions on the sales performance of five main vendors within an MVLP. Findings of the study indicate low responsiveness of cardholders to LP-induced promotions. The responsiveness may be improved if multiple communication channels are used jointly to present an individual-vendor promotion. Moreover, this is one of the first empirical studies to investigate potential networking benefits of coalitions in an MVLP. Empirical evidence of coalition benefits of promotions is lacking, because we find neither stronger effects for joint-relative to individual promotions nor significant spillover effects of promotions across vendors (i. e., cross-vendor effects). The current study offers potential explanations for these findings.

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) emerged from a realisation among transnational corporations of the need to account for and redress their adverse impact on society: specifically, on human rights, labour practices, and the environment. Two transnational tobacco companies have recently adopted CSR: Philip Morris, and British American Tobacco. This report explains the origins and theory behind CSR; examines internal company documents from Philip Morris showing the company’s deliberations on the matter, and the company’s perspective on its own behaviour; and reflects on whether marketing tobacco is antithetical to social responsibility.

This article holds that a more effective US-Australian alliance should attempt to shift the logic of interoperability from the operational to the politico-strategic level. Taking the F-35 as an example, I argue that Australia would never be fully self-reliant in a confrontation with a major regional power. Furthermore, Australia's contribution of airpower to an American-led coalition involved in a major regional conflict would be, at best, token and strategically inconsequential. Hence, instead of pursuing high-end capabilities, such as the JSF, Australia should dedicate itself to preparing for low- and mid-range conflicts. This focus would ease the US burden of regional peacekeeping, internal security assistance, and stabilization operations in the Asia-Pacific region. In exchange, Australia would invite a greater American presence that might include naval and air assets. This approach would exploit each country's competitive advantages and be the best means of advancing the alliance-partnership into the 21st century. For this to occur, however, the US would have to take dramatic steps toward allaying Australia's historically ingrained fears of abandonment. Adapted from the source document.

Background: Better Jobs Better Care was a five-state direct care workforce demonstration designed to change policy and management practices that influence recruitment and retention of direct care workers, problems that continue to challenge providers. Purpose: One of the projects, the North Carolina Partner Team, developed a unified approach in which skilled nursing, home care, and assisted living providers could be rewarded for meeting standards of workplace excellence. This case study documents the complex adaptive system agents and processes that coalesced to result in legislation recognizing the North Carolina New Organizational Vision Award. Methods: We used a holistic, single-case study design. Qualitative data from project work plans and progress reports as well as notes from interviews with key stakeholders and observation of meetings were coded into a simple rubric consisting of characteristics of complex adaptive systems. Findings: Key system agents in the state set the stage for the successful multistakeholder coalition. These included leadership by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services and a several year effort to develop a unifying vision for workforce development. Grant resources were used to facilitate both content and process work. Structure was allowed to emerge as needed. The coalition's own development is shown to have changed the context from which it was derived. Practice Implications: An inclusive and iterative process produced detailed standards and measures for the voluntary recognition process. With effective facilitation, the interests of the multiple stakeholders coalesced into a policy response that encourages practice changes. Implications for managing change-oriented coalitions are discussed.

The article critically examines Mapam's activity regarding the Military Government imposed on Arab-populated areas between 1948 and 1966. It analyzes and compares the party's declared stand and its parliamentary activity with the role played by the issue as a factor in coalition negotiations. The article contends that the issue of the Military Government did not serve as a crucial factor in Mapam's decision either to join the coalition or to stay out of it. It also claims that Mapam did not have a direct influence on the actual decisions concerning the Military Government, due to Mapai's dominance in the Israeli political system in those years. The article suggests that the case of Mapam and the Military Government sheds light on the modus operandi of the Israeli political system prior to the Six Day War, on the extent of Mapai's dominance of the political system in Israel prior to the 1977 political upheaval, on the limited role and influence available to small parties in a dominant party system, and on the inherent conflict and potential collision between security considerations and democracy.